Heartsick
by Ravenietta
Summary: Everyone has a breaking point. It's only a miracle she didn't reach hers sooner. A gift fic for worldsgreatest4ever.


_ I don't own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or the Heroes of Olympus._

_ This is dedicated to Hannah, A. K. A. worldsgreatest4ever, for the support and all-around coolness. How else could I repay you for being such a good friend and writing such an awesome story?_

_ This one-shot was inspired by On Your Porch, by The Format. I don't own that either. _

_**EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: It is an AU. The Argo II left on schedule, to arrive when Percy and his friends weren't there to keep the peace. The other** **difference is that Reyna was able to receive a message telling of incoming warriors to help from Camp Half-Blood from Percy, and through much difficulty, prepared her troops for battle, but with a chance for negotiation. There is also a few other changes. Please review with suggestions and constructive criticism. **_

_Hope you like it, Hannah. _

_A few spoilers, I will warn, for The Son of Neptune. Wait, you figured that out by reading up above? Oops. Sorry…Heck, I give away the whole freakin' book. So you probably shouldn't read this unless you've already read the book._

_I was on your porch  
>The smoke sank into my skin, so I came inside to be with you<br>And we talked all night  
>About everything you could imagine, 'cause come the mornin' I'll be gone<br>And as...our eyes start to close  
>I turn to you and I let you know<br>...That I love you..._

)o((o))o((o)R)o((o))o((o)

Red, gold, and purple streaks followed the sun's departure like paint dripping down a canvas. Only a few miles more and the red in the sky might reflect the bloodshed on the ground. She hoped that was not the case, but with no easy way of communication, there was no way to know if they would attack.

Annabeth couldn't say she cared all that much anymore.

She had waited. First with impatience and fear, then with worry and resignation. And then she had waited with tiredness. She was so tired, in every sense of the word. Annabeth hadn't gotten even four hours of sleep this week.

She hadn't had peace of mind for eight months.

Annabeth adjusted her position on the wood bench, releasing some of the tension on her aching back. It was late afternoon, and green hills rolled underneath them, along with wisps of dying fog. In the distance, she could see the lights of San Francisco starting to glow with the prospect of evening.

Almost there.

Everyone was starting to rise from below. They'd brought about half the camp, just for reinforcements, and left the other half to guard Camp Half-Blood. Among the ones coming, there was Leo, Piper, Jason, and Annabeth, of course. Clarisse, Chris, Malcolm, Nyssa, Rachel, and Will had also volunteered for the 'honor,' along with some others, totaling about forty people in all.

Leo was standing at some sort of a control booth, resetting coordinates and scribbling notes in a small notebook he carried everywhere these days, simultaneously chattering to Piper, who looked distracted. Annabeth didn't blame her; her relationship with Jason had escalated to something more in February, right on Valentine's Day, and Annabeth could tell Piper was anxious about the possibility of losing it in an hour's time.

Jason and Will had come up from the berths after taking short naps; Annabeth had decided that everyone get some extra sleep before the final confrontation. She hadn't taken her own advice, of course. These days, she was lucky if she slept an hour at night. Insomnia plagued her constantly, dark thoughts stirred by the dreams that came when she did sleep.

Clarisse was rubbing down her already spotless spear on a bolted-down steel table near Piper. Her scowl was not as pronounced as usual, a sign that she was worried. Everyone else was still below.

The warship itself was an impressive sight. It was mostly steel reinforced with Celestial Bronze, since the divine metal was hard to come by in mass quantities. There was an assortment of added weapons, mostly cannons. Festus's head was displayed at the front, ruby eyes seemingly glinting with pride.

Annabeth unconsciously fingered her knife. She stood up, her joints creaking. She'd been sitting in the same place since two o'clock, frozen with worry and nerves. Annabeth unsteadily walked towards Piper and Leo.

"How far?" she asked, craving and yet dreading the answer.

"It's four miles away," said Leo, for once sounding grim. "We should be able to see it in a minute."

"How will we know the location with the Mist?" Piper asked, turning to Leo. "We forgot to discuss that last council meeting."

"Don't worry, we have it figured out," Annabeth said. She'd thought of every possible road block. "We've narrowed down the location, with evidence, to this particular area. The Mist won't affect us, since we know what we're looking for."

"Even so, Jason will probably see it before us," Leo chimed in. Piper nodded and looked to the horizon.

The deck grew crowded, even being as spacious as it was. No one wanted to miss the drama to come. People milled around, talking uneasily and checking weapons. If an attack really came, then no one wanted to be unprepared.

Annabeth glanced over the side of the gigantic warship. San Francisco, in all its sleepy regularity, was calm and beautiful. Sunshine lit the air and hit the golden sidewalks, bouncing off of shadowy buildings and cascading through trees to puddle on the ground.

Oh, how she hated this city.

A cry split the sounds of traffic. Annabeth turned from her examinations and saw Jason pointing slightly to the left. Leo looked up, noticed him, and tilted the ship to Jason's satisfaction.

"That's it," he said, peering excitedly. "There it is."

Annabeth noticed his hands shaking slightly.

She squinted in the direction Jason was pointing in. Sure enough, she could just barely see the tops of several white marble roofs, huddled together and tucked deep into a lush green valley. It seemed to shimmer, though whether it was from fog or heat or the Mist, Annabeth couldn't tell.

Now the excitement was tangible, people whispering and speculating about what lay ahead. Annabeth closed her eyes. _Here we go._

She almost didn't realize Piper had joined her, as absorbed as she was in her own thoughts. Annabeth nearly jumped, but instead, opened her eyes and stared forward, letting the light blind her.

"I know how you feel," Piper said bluntly, not turning to look at her either.

"Oh?" Annabeth raised an eyebrow, motionless. "And what would that be?"

Piper closed her eyes and shuddered, her chocolate brown hair blowing in wisps around her shoulders. "You're worried. That maybe he's already gone."

"Yes," Annabeth admitted. "I hope he hasn't gotten himself killed."

"You know that's not what I meant," Piper replied, expressionless. Down below, the cluster of buildings that had seemed so far away a minute ago was approaching rapidly. With every inch forward gained, Annabeth's hands gripped the railing tighter. The buildings came into clearer focus, and now she could see a shallow river circling the basin.

"I know," Annabeth said, a little tartly. "But that's also another reason to worry, isn't it?"

"You know he'll be fine. From what you've told me, Percy's pretty level-headed."

Annabeth sighed and faced Piper. "…Let's hope that it works for both ways."

Piper only nodded her head, rocking back and forth a little. "I'm worried, too."

Annabeth didn't know what to say. They were in reversed positions; both afraid of losing a relationship that they didn't know how cope without. Finally, she said wearily, "It's a damned hard road to follow, isn't it?"

"You know it."

The valley was close enough to view with some semblance of clarity. An air of tight tension hung over it, visible through the people marching in squads, bristling with pointy spear tips. It was shown through the busy streets, which were barricaded heavily. Through the silence woven among edgy footsteps, beating in time to a nervous heart.

But the warship's shadow became too big to contain, and it spilled into the dell, alerting the citizens to the ship's presence. Many stared with wonder, but a few stood there tight-lipped, as if thinking, _Great. Another enemy to fight. What's the newest catastrophe?_

They flew past the city, as Jason had told them that it would be better to land near the actual camp, regardless of the tactical disadvantages. The campers would be more inclined to listen to them if they willingly gave themselves some sort of vulnerability. Or perhaps not…the only thing they could do was try it. Besides, Annabeth wasn't leaving these grounds without Percy, and that looked difficult, to say the least. The place was a fortress; impressive and intimidating to any who laid eyes on it.

The descent was rocky. Leo had been having a few problems with the landing gear, particularly in the front area of the ship, so Annabeth expected the loud crunches she heard with the ship meeting ground. It didn't make her wince any less. The whole ship was jarred, and a couple of her fellow campers, being unobservant, and fallen flat on their faces. Such a graceful first impression.

An eerie silence veiled the valley. Annabeth scanned the Roman troops assembled hastily, some of the younger ones still scrambling to fasten their armor. Rows and rows of tired, desperate faces stared at the ship, unblinking. There were hundred of demigods, ranging anywhere from eighteen to fifty-five, as far as she could see. Annabeth had figured they wouldn't bring out the younger ones until about halfway through, when they were much less likely to get the brunt of the force. It would be homicide. But she was definitely surprised by the older people; demigods that could be _parents_. Might be parents. Annabeth felt a twinge of something like wistfulness. _Oh, God, no, don't think like that, don't—_

The crashes below finally stopped, the ship silenced and her engines cut. The warship had plowed a shallow furrow into a weed-choked field, facing the camp's entrance. Far behind them, Annabeth could hear the murmur of the river whispering over stone.

A solitary figure rose among the ranks. She was definitely a warrior, battle armor gleaming and eyes glittering, too far away for Annabeth to recognize the color. Brown hair flowed down her back; tied up in a way that made it difficult for enemies to use it as something to grab and take advantage of. Something also told Annabeth that anyone who tried would find themselves on the wrong end of a spear.

A new voice cut the air, and Annabeth had to remind herself that sound still existed, having shut her mind to all distractions. She swallowed and narrowed her eyes, rubbing the knife at her side.

"You are intruding," the woman said, her voice raising hair on the back of Annabeth's neck. "What are your purposes for entering?" _You're stronger, you're smarter, you're faster, you can make it_, some voice in her head whispered. She had to pinch the skin of her thigh to remind herself. _No. You cannot fix everything. Pride will not rear its ugly head now. You're better than that, at least._

Jason stepped forward, ever the diplomat. "Reyna. It's been awhile."

"Jason…" Her reply _almost _cracked with sadness and memory, but Annabeth noted that it did not contain surprise. "You're back."

"I am. I was a little…delayed."

_I'll say._

"Things have been busy while you were gone. I…we didn't think you would return, for a while yet."

"Listen," Jason began uncomfortably, "I know that I've been gone a long time. But there's a reason for that. I can explain—"

The woman sighed tiredly. "No need. We know enough for now. We can speak of a truce later. We were already informed by a…previous source."

"Who?" Piper said, speaking for the first time. The woman eyed her curiously, her head cocking slightly to the left.

"A new camper. A very…interesting one." Her voice was wary, as if she assessing the truth of their intentions. "Percy Jackson."

Annabeth's heart caught in her throat. She had to hold herself back from lunging forward, over the side of the warship, to further interrogate the lady. Instead, she spoke, clearing the rusty silence from her throat.

"Where…where is he?"

The woman did something that clearly set her soldiers in unease. She tugged her helmet free, shaking her head out, and by doing so, made Annabeth realize that she was not a full-grown woman, but a teenage girl her same age. Her face was lined with the creases of the sleepless and worried, but it was steeled all the same, prepared for battle. Her eyes were iron, and her spine was straight and proud. _Reyna _was a warrior.

_Reyna._ She had finally put the name to a face.

She was about to speak, her lips parting, when a soldier from her group yelled out in a surprising act of defying authority, "He's on a suicide mission. Gonna die in the cold with his loser friends."

Reyna's head snapped back, glaring intensely at the spot where the noise had come from. "It's a hard mission, true. But it's all the hope we have."

A quiet snort broke the silence. "Then we have nothing."

Reyna's eyes closed tightly, her hands forming fists at her side. Her arms finally crossed stiffly across her chest. Looking up, she tiredly stared them down. "Come. We shall discuss our circumstances inside." Her hand gestured toward a small non-descript canvas tent pitched about a mile back.

Annabeth prepared to exit the ship with other campers. She could taste something hot and sour in the back of her throat.

The edge of her own knife seared a thin line of blood on the palm of her hand, she gripped it so tightly.

)o((o))o((o)R)o((o))o((o)

Night.

It was different here. At Camp Half-Blood, it was a comfortable campfire atmosphere, with laughter and s'mores. With fireflies glowing among the pine trees. With the sound of waves hitting the shore, pounding and pounding and pounding with impossible gentleness. With the sand gritty between her toes as cool breezes skimmed her face and Percy squeezed her hand.

Here, it was stony and still, like the forest was dead. Crickets didn't chirp in a soothing symphony. Leaves didn't rustle with fluttering owls' wings. People watched them with flat eyes.

She had asked Reyna a few minutes before to visit his bunk. She had responded with surprising understanding.

"_Yes, of course," Reyna said smoothly, and something about it felt forced. "He's in the Fifth Cohort. Check their quarters."_

_Annabeth nodded solemnly back in thanks, and left the room, welcoming the heat outside. Through it was only forty degrees, Piper and Jason and Reyna had been left alone inside the tent. _

_Annabeth shivered, and hurried her pace._

The place was deserted, devoid of human life. It was a building of fading grandeur, a sanctuary for the underdog. _Of course Percy was placed here._

His bunk was clean, for him, but she suspected it wouldn't have passed Roman standards. The corners weren't quite tucked in right. But she noticed this with an absent note of irony. Instead, the object on top of the covers caught her attention.

His T-shirt lay there, folded with typical Percy neatness. As in, it was rumpled and wrinkled. The letters were too smudged to make out, spidery black scribbles against faded orange.

She gently picked it up.

Longingly, she held it to her face, breathing_ him _in.

Annabeth heard a crackle. Startled, she nearly dropped the T-shirt.

Frowning, she pulled free a piece of notebook paper, tucked deeply into the folds of the shirt, and nearly cried.

_How could you have known?_

The words were blurry on the page.

_Dear Annabeth,_

_I don't know you. I don't know you, but I miss you._

_I'm sorry I couldn't stay. There are some things you just know you have to do, and this was one of them. _

_I'll be back to finish this letter. I promise._

_-Percy_

Her hand holding the paper dropped to her side. Falling to her knees, Annabeth let her head bow, and let her discipline fall away. Her breath shuddered in her chest, fighting against a wail of the purest agony.

And Annabeth Chase called on all her strength—

—to let it go, and cried senselessly into the T-shirt clutched in her numb hands.

_So far gone…_

)o((o))o((o)R)o((o))o((o)

_Reviewing is nice. *coughcough* It took me a really long time to finish this piece. _


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